Literary Analysis and Criticism of “The Tell-Tale Heart” Essay

Human beings have all experienced guilt, the consequence of committing a wrong, and the manipulation it has on decisions. In the short story â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart,† author Edgar Allan Poe demonstrates the theme that guilt is strong and has the power to overcome conscience; he uses characterization, the conflict, and symbolism to communicate this message. The characterization of the narrator most clearly shows this theme. In addition to Poe’s use of characterization, his decision to show the struggle the narrator endures with himself reveals the causes of the narrator to succumb to his guilt. The use of symbolism throughout the novel draws attention to the narrator’s guilt and his insanity. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart† is told by a first-person narrator who tells of a story in hope of convincing the reader of his sanity though throughout the story, he shows the strong control his guilt has over him and his mind, and ultimately proves his insanity. The narrator describes his plot to kill an old man whom the narrator didn’t hate, but who he desired to kill due to the old man’s â€Å"Evil Eye† (Poe 1). The old man’s eye was pale blue and covered with a film. It gave the narrator chills in his blood. The narrator began his plot to commit the murder. He crept into the old man’s room every night at midnight for seven nights, but finding the eye closed as the old man slept, the narrator couldn’t bring himself to commit the deed. The narrator described himself as being â€Å"never kinder to the old man than during the whole week before† he killed him (Poe 1). On the eighth night, the old man awoke to the sound of the narrato r chuckling as he was in the process of entering the room. When the narrator opened a gap in the lantern, the ray of light revealed the vulture eye. The narrator began to hear a sound which he believed to be the old man’s heart beating, and as the beating grew louder, the narrator’s anxiety grew which led the narrator to commit the murder by pulling the mattress over the old man. The narrator dismembered the corpse and buried them under planks of the flooring of the old man’s bedroom. The police arrived at the house, a neighbor having heard the old man’s scream during the murder, and found nothing out of place in the house. While chatting with the police, the narrator began again hearing the beating of what he believed to be the old man’s heart. The beating grew louder and louder, and no longer to able bear the sound, the narrator confessed to the police of committing the deed. The characterization of the narrator made the narrator’s insanity and sense of guilt vastly palpable. The narrator of the st ory is a first-person unreliable narrator as he is surmounted with insanity, and the reader is unable to know how much of the story the narrator tells is true. The characterization of the narrator helps prove his madness as well as his guilt, leading to his confession. He â€Å"strongly believes in the need for making methodical and calculated decisions but is eventually overcome by inexplicable psychological forces that stem from his irrational, unstable nature† (Historical Context 1). The narrator is spiraling into folly as he recounts the story of committing the murder of an old man. He begins the story saying that he is â€Å"VERY, very dreadfully nervous I had been and am; but why will you say that I am mad?† (Poe 1). The narrator admits to being nervous while committing the murder and now in the present. He doesn’t believe himself to be a madman as he tries to convince the reader of this by describing his reasons for murdering the old man and his precise and cautious steps he took throughout the murder. He explains being extremely kind to the old man as to trick him into never suspecting the murder. His precise plans included his slow and careful steps to enter the old man’s bedroom each night for eight nights before committing the murder without disturbing the old man in his sleep and the steps he took to conceal the corpse by accurately dismembering the body and hiding the parts under the floor board so as â€Å"that no human eye—not even his—could have detected any thing wrong† (Poe 2). The narrator’s reasons for killing the old man provide as much trivial proof of his sanity as his precautions do. The narrator â€Å"has no rational reason for wanting to kill the old man† (Chua 1). He declares to have desired to kill the old man as to rid himself of the old man’s vulture eye. The description of the old man’s eye as that of a vulture is the narrator’s attempt to defend his actions by comparing himself to a vulnerable being defenseless to an unsightly scavenger. The narrator claims, â€Å"Object there was none. Passion there was none. I loved the old man. He had never wronged me. He had never given me insult. For his gold I had no desire. I think it was his eye!† (Poe 1). The narrator declares love for the old man whom he brutally murdered and dismembered, chuckling at his cleverness in doing so. In an effort to divide the person of the old man from the old man’s allegedly evil eye, which prompts the narrator’s hatred, the narrator discloses his insanity. This delusional partition allows the narrator to be oblivious to the irony of claiming to have loved his victim. The first-person narration of the story helps reveal the narrator’s mental illness to the reader. â€Å"The particular standpoint from which the ‘Tell-Tale Heart’ is told provides the reader with insight into the major character’s motivation in carrying out the murder and in telling us about it† (Moore 1). The narrator speaks of â€Å"mortal terror† that the narrator says many nights at midnight â€Å"has welled up from my own bosom, deepening, with its dreadful echo, the terrors that distracted me† (Poe 1). â€Å"The reason for the crime lies exclusively in the narrator’s disturbed mind† (Moore 1). The narrator’s explanation of the murder reveals that he heard the beating of a heart, what he believed to be the old man’s heart. This beating heart twice caused him to act irrationally during the story as his actions were in hope of stopping the sound of the beating heart: it caused the narrator to finally commit the murder and it caused him to confess to the police. This shows his guilt he feels for killing the innocent old man as he confesses to the murder though he had clearly gotten away with it, as did his nervousness that he conveys that he is overcome with throughout the story. The conflict of the story helps to reveal the strong prevalence of guilt experienced by the narrator. The main conflict of the story is an inner conflict, character vs. himself, as the narrator struggles with his own disturbed mind. The narrator, after deciding to murder the old man due to his vulture eye, experiences the forceful sound of a heart beat. His struggles with himself cause him to kill the old man whom he loved. The narrator in the beginning of the story confesses to the reader that he suffers from a â€Å"disease† that apparently â€Å"sharpened† his senses, specifically his sense of hearing acute (Poe 1), in an attempt to rationally explain why he believed he heard the old man’s heart beating. The narrator attempts to fight his conscience while experiencing this sound, specifically when he tries not to confess the murder to the police and reveal the secret location of the corpse. The murder of the innocent old man causes the narrator to feel guilt such that he ends up confessing the deed in the end. A minor conflict is the conflict of the narrator vs. the eye which causes him to commit the deed in the first place. The vulture-like eye gives the narrator’s blood chills and vexed him so that he had to be rid of it. The narrator acts as a helpless creature to the powers of the eye. The narrator, in hatred of the eye, thus conceived the plan to murder the old man so he would never again be disturbed by the eye. Symbolism is ever so dominant in â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart.† The most apparent symbol in the short story is the sound of the beating heart. The narrator believes the sound is the old man’s beating heart brought on by his nervousness on the eighth night and heard by the narrator due to his â€Å"disease.† The sound of the beating heart represents the guilt and remorse the narrator feels for committing the deed as it causes him to confess the deed to the police. The narrator’s growing agitation to the intensifying sound causes him to confess as he can no longer bear the sound, revealing his guilt. The narrator had clearly gotten away without suspicion of the police with the deed, but in the end, he was his own worst enemy as he admitted himself as the murderer. Another obvious symbol is the vulture eye of the old man. The narrator possesses the idea that an old man is staring at him with the Evil Eye and placing a curse on him as he gets chills in his blood. The narrator also obsesses over the eye as he desires to separate it from the old man as to spare the man from his aggressive response to the eye. The narrator reveals his incapability to distinguish that the â€Å"eye† is the â€Å"I,† or identity, of the old man (Chua 1). The eyes represent the spirit of human identity, which can’t be alienated from the body. The eye can’t be destroyed without bringing about the old man’s death. The watch that the narrator speaks of symbolizes time and the narrator’s obsession with time. Time is a very important factor in the story as it controls the narrator’s every move. The narrator routinely entered the old man’s room at midnight and described his actions as moving slower than the minute hand of the watch (Poe 1). The lantern that the narrator uses in his nightly routine in the old man’s bedroom represents the narrator’s hatred for the eye. The narrator sees the old man sleeping and with the eye closed, he’s unable to commit the murder. On the eighth night, the ray of light from the lantern reveals the Evil Eye, which is the narrator’s enemy, and sets off the narrator’s delusional hatred for the vulture eye, making him able to kill the old man. The theme of the story is that guilt is a powerful emotion that can cause one to succumb to their guilt, in this case, the narrator. All the carefully planned elements of the story work to create an overall unity, from the narrator’s denial of his insanity to his confession, the delusional conflict of the narrator, and the abundance of symbolism throughout the story. The heart symbolizes the narrator’s guilt and causes him to confess to the police. Even when no one knows one committed a bad deed, that person themselves knows of the deed, so they will have to live with the guilt and the consequences of their actions, or succumb to their guilt and confess. Works Cited Chua, John. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart: The Twin and the Doppelganger.† Short Stories for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. eNotes.com. January 2006. 15 December 2009. . Moore, R. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart: The First-Person Narrative Viewpoint in the ‘Tell-Tale Heart.’† eNotes: The Tell-Tale Heart. Ed. Penny Satoris. Seattle: Enotes.com Inc, October 2002. eNotes.com. 15 December 2010. . Poe, Edgar Allan. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart.† 2009 eNotes.com, Inc. Web. 15 December 2009. â€Å"The Tell-Tale Heart: Historical Context.† Short Stories for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1998. eNotes.com. January 2006. 15 December 2009. .

Wendigo: Cannibalism in Native American Folklore

Wendigo Cannibalism in Native American Folklore Connor Downie EN156-01: Mythology Professor Quinn 30March13 Lurking in the deep woods of the Northern United States and Southern Canada lies a mysterious and fearsome Native American monster, the Wendigo. The Wendigo is by far one of the most mysterious and feared monsters in not only in the Algonquian folklore which it is attributed to, but also other indigenous populations all over the world.Although this creature goes by many names in the Native American Tribes, including Wechuge (Athapaskan Beaver), Windigo (Algonkian), Witiko (Sekani), Wittikow (Cree), Wintuc (Lenape), Wintiko (Objibwa), and others, it is represented in the folklore of many cultures. For the sake of simplicity, the term Wendigo (Woodland Cree) will be used throughout this paper. Native Americans lived in harmony with the land around them, and their legends and stories showed the necessity to preserve that harmony, and the consequences of failing to do such.The stor y and idea behind the Wendigo is no exception to this; being an â€Å"unnatural† and dysfunctional part of life. This paper will observe and analyze the role of the Wendigo in Native American legend as well as the effect that it had on, not only the Natives Americans, but those who came into contact and studied the tribes. The Wendigo According to legend, a Wendigo is neither a man nor non-human, but rather something in between.A fully transformed Wendigo is most often described as a giant creature standing between eight and thirty feet tall, possessing incredible strength and speed, large claws and a body that looks like a skeleton with ash-toned skin. However, in any stage of transformation, it is most easily identified by its ravenous and continuous hunger for human flesh (Atwood 84). A Wendigo’s hunger is believed to be so insatiable that one of first things it consumes is its own lips (Carlson 359). For Native Americans, encountering a Wendigo, whether by accident or on purpose, could e the last mistake you ever make. You cannot outrun or outwit a Wendigo; and according to most stories, you are unable to talk or plead with the creature due to the fact it has lost the capacity for human speech after a long period of isolation (Atwood 84). However, that does not mean they are intelligent. The amount of time they have spent alone in forced isolation has made them the perfect hunter. They do not pursue their victims with inchoate frenzy but rather use superior cunning and an advanced knowledge of their game's desires and weaknesses.They hunt people with the cultural strategy and intelligence that people use to hunt animals (Ridington 110). Their hunting skills are only amplified by their extreme elusiveness and ability to survive in the harshest of climates. They are the epitome of everything to be afraid of in the woods. The original Wendigos can be found in the Pawnee creation myth, as the creatures that came before the Pawnee and were destroy ed by the Creator Tirdwa. â€Å"The men of the present era were not the original inhabitants of the earth.They were preceded by another race – people of great size and strength. These were so swift of foot, and so powerful, that they could easily run down and kill the buffalo†¦ The race of giants had no respect for the Ruler. On the contrary, they derided and insulted him in every way possible. When the sun rose, or when it thundered and rained, they would defy him. They had great confidence in their own powers, and believed that they were able to cope with the Creator. As they increased in numbers they grew more defiant, and at length became so bad that Tirdwa determined to destroy them.This he attempted to do at first by shooting the lightning at them; but the bolts glanced aside from their bodies without injuring them. When he found that they could not be killed by that means, he sent a great rain, which destroyed them by drowning (Grinnell 122). According to legend, a few of these giants managed to escape the flood and the Wendigos managed to survive. As the Creator made the new species of man, the original Pawnee, these giants shrunk back into the wilderness, emerging only occasionally to feed on the unsuspecting human.There are two kinds of Wendigos, Non-Human and Human. The first human Wendigo is sometimes said to have been a man who, driven mad by hunger and snow blindness, mistook his family for a group of beavers, killed and ate them (Smith 68). Human Wendigos do not always take on the traditional described appearance unless they are exposed to the severe isolation required to drive the person mad. Most human Wendigos mostly retain their human features, and instead only experience the desire for loneliness and a craving for human flesh.Also common to stories, both in legend and those recorded by persons studying native tribes, was the belief that a person transforming into a Wendigo had lost permanent control over their own actions and t hat the only possible solution is death (Ridington 108). Many people, fearing that they would bring harm to their family, begged for death rather than face a full transformation. Human Wendigos, although powerful, can be killed by dismemberment and the burning the remains to prevent the evil spirit from ever returning to the earth (Atwood 85).In the majority of stories that result in the death of a Wendigo, that Wendigo was at one time a human. Other traditional cures involved the consumption of copious amounts of hot grease from sources such as bear fat, melted deer tallow, and sturgeon oil (Atwood 85). Non-Human Wendigos are seen as the original Wendigos that were around before the first humans. These creatures are considered to be much more powerful than their human counterparts, and were able to inhabit and attack the dreams of their victims. These creatures rarely appear in legends, but rather are blamed for the actions of a possessed person.Killing a non-human Wendigo was not easy and stories celebrated the bravery of those who acted as bait in Wendigo traps. Algonquians often had great battles and had to employ the help of shamans (Podruchny 690). It is important to note that non-human Wendigos are considered by Native Americans to be Otherworldly, and on the same degree as the spirits that inhabit the spirit world alongside the Creator. Origins and Folklore The earliest reference to Wendigo occurs as an entry in the Powhatan dictionary appended to Strachey's Historie of Travell into Virginia Britania.The original word was wintekowa, meaning â€Å"owl† in Algonquian. For many natives, especially member of the Cree Nation, Owl calls were precursors of the deaths of individuals, and thus owls were seen as the sign of a coming Wendigo. Owls, like Wendigos, are formidable predators and possess large glistening eyes, and therefore became synonymous with the same (Brightman 341). The word Wendigo itself is derived from the Cree word wihtikowiw, meaning â€Å"he eats greedily†, which may explain the reason why ost believed to be Wendigos were isolated from the community before they consumed everything the community had. Native American Tribes lived in harmony with the land and the creatures around them. All tribes believed that upsetting the natural order of the world would cause severe disarray and eventually would lead to the destruction of the world. To counter this, hunters and gatherers would take only what they needed, waste nothing, and praise the creator for allowing them to be worthy to take such.Animals were held in high regard, not only for their gifts of food, clothing, and other materials, but also for the powers endowed upon them by the creator. Eating the flesh of an animal was said to transmit to persons, under appropriate circumstances, desired attributes of the species. For example, raw moose blood is said to impart onto the hunter a kind of invisibility relative to the perceptions of game animals, thus al lowing the hunter greater luck in the successful hunting of animals due to his increased stealthy abilities (Brightman 364).Like the flesh of any other animal, human flesh was believed to possess a Great Spirit power that is acquired through consumption of the tissue or organs. Eating human flesh would exacerbate the powers already present in the human consumer; endowing the Wendigo physical and spiritual abilities to overcome and eat human prey. In essence, a human’s abilities were multiplied and would eventually cause them to expand out of control and transform the person into a Wendigo (Brightman 364).The Wendigo often appears in stories in legends, but unlike most other mythical creatures, its purpose was less to teach moral values, and more to impart upon members of a community the consequences from straying from the natural order of life and defiance of the rules of the community. There are three kinds of stories in which a Wendigo is a part of. The first kind of story, involves a Wendigo which may be presented as a manifestation of the environment; the spirit is a spirit of place. In these stories, meeting up with a Wendigo carries no more moral weight than meeting up with a bear.If you get eaten, about all that can be said of you is that you ought to have been less unlucky (Atwood 86). In the second kind of story, a Wendigo appears as a warning or as a message to the protagonist. In these stories, if you get eaten by a Wendigo, the audience doesn’t feel sorry for you, because it was your own fault for getting eaten. These stories served to send the message that if you behaved and followed the rules like you were supposed to, such a thing would never happen to you (Atwood 86).The third kind of story the Wendigo is a fragment of the protagonist's psyche, and represents part of their subconscious that is made public to teach a lesson. In these stories, human beings who have â€Å"become a Wendigo † have not actually transformed, but i n fact worried so much that the creature they have feared or dreamed about splits off from the rest of their personality, destroys it, and becomes manifested through the person’s body (Atwood 86). These were used to teach lessons in regards to gluttony, loneliness, and other behaviors seen by natives to be unnatural and destructive.Wendigo stories express the danger and isolation of living in the subarctic wilderness as well as taboos against cannibalism (Ferrara 77). The Wendigo was seen as the personification of winter, hunger, spiritual selfishness, and isolation (Atwood 85). Winter is a time of scarcity in both food and warmth, and was considered by the natives to be one of the most necessary times for a community to band together to survive the harshness. A scarcity of materials would give rise to hunger; forcing people to either share what they had with each other for the good of the group, or hoard what they had for their own sakes.The choice to hoard, and act of selfi shness, was seen as an act of defiance not only against a group, but the Creator himself. The penalty for such a choice was being ostracized and isolated from the remainder of the community, and in some cases, death. Transformation According to lore, there are four recorded ways to be transformed into a Wendigo, either human or non-human. Most methods of transformation include large amounts of stress or pain, both mental and physical, and a long transformation period that may not occur all at once.In order to become a non-human Wendigo, one must either be born a Wendigo, or be eaten by a Wendigo. Although an individual Wendigo may once have been a man or a woman, once fully transformed they no longer have any evidence of gender (Atwood 84). Because of this, there is no recorded lore of Wendigos ever giving birth to new Wendigos, other than the Pawnee origins legend in regards to Wendigos inhabiting the world before man. Because of this, most non-human Wendigos are said to be the ori ginals that have survived for hundreds of years. The other method is to be eaten by a Wendigo and have our now â€Å"evil spirit† enter the otherworld. A person suffering this fate becomes the Native equivalent of a Demon and possesses humans through dreams and thoughts. Thoughts of the Wendigo are said to drive a person mad with anxiety about becoming a Wendigo, to the point that they give in to the desires to consume other people (Ferrara 79). Native Shamans were notorious in legends for using their ability to communicate with the spirits in order to send one of these creatures into the dreams of another, thus tormenting them with the thought of being transformed.To become a human Wendigo is much worse a fate than a non-human Wendigo. To become such, a human must either consume human flesh, or be bitten by a Wendigo. The reason for the consumption of human flesh is irrelevant, as soon as it passes your lips, you fate is essentially sealed. Legends of this kind of transforma tion speak of people starving from a lack of food, who eventually give in to the desire for food and eat their companions or family members. Like the stories of the Loup Garou or French word for werewolf, a Wendigo bite served as another way for one to be transformed into one of these creatures.However, unlike werewolves, a human was unable to transform back into a human once the transformation had begun (Podruchny 681). Both being bitten and the consumption of human flesh was said to not be instantaneous but rather a lengthy process, signaled by a period of strange emotions and behaviors by the possessed person that served as a series of warnings to others (Ferrara 79). The Wendigo in Reality In 1767, Alexander Henry observed an Ojibwa man who had killed and eaten four relatives during a food crisis. Henry recorded the actions of the tribe in his journal. The Indians entertain an opinion that the man who has once made human flesh his food will never afterwards be satisfied with any other†¦ He ate with relish nothing that was given to him but, indifferent to the food prepared, fixed his eyes continually on the children which were in the Indian lodge, and frequently exclaimed, ‘How fat they are! ’†¦ Be this as it may, his behavior was considered, and not less naturally, as marked with the most alarming symptoms; and the Indians, apprehensive that he would prey on these children, resolved on putting him to death (Brightman 348). The tribe was so scared of the unnaturalness of the man’s actions that they had him killed. Not unlike the Salem Witch Trials, those suspected of being a Wendigo were given little or no chance to defend themselves. They were immediately outcast from the group and treated like they were infected with some sort of disease. In many cases, acts of cannibalism were not actually witnessed, but rather reported by the suspected individual or other persons, or didn’t even occur at all. In seventy cases reporte d, 44 involved an actual act of cannibalism.In 26 cases, or 37 percent the potential Wendigo either recovered or was killed to prevent cannibalism (Rohrl 98). Around the time of Freud, psychologists began to analyze the stories and multiple cases regarding the Wendigo. Many noted that the common link between most cases was a psychological weakness and breakdown of the normally functioning personality (Ridington 107). From these psychologists, emerged the term â€Å"Wendigo Psychosis† which was used to describe the mental state of persons suspected or convicted of being a Wendigo.People suspected of suffering from this were often described as being â€Å"Bushed† or suffering from â€Å"Cabin Fever† (Atwood 87). For most, in order to reach such a breakdown of mind required large amounts of time spent apart from others, usually in harsh or near fatal conditions. The compulsive desire and craving for human flesh that appears in many of the Wendigo cases may point to a psychotic breakdown of normal emotions, motivations, and satisfactions in people who kill or are killed as cannibal monsters.However, unlike many other psychotic breakdowns, Wendigo behavior it is believed to be genuine and real by the members of society as well as by the afflicted individual (Ridington 128). More recently however, another possible reason for the actions of those believed to be Wendigos was uncovered, a lack of proper diet. Meat, and especially fatty meat, is essential to the diet of the Eskimo and of Northern Athapaskan Indians. Researchers claimed that a fat deficiency could lead to headache, and, in four to eight weeks, ultimately death (Rohrl 100).Was the reason for the actions of some not necessarily motivated by extreme hunger, but rather a lack of proper nutrition? It has been demonstrated that a drop in the blood sugar level can lead to many psychic phenomena, including depressive states, anxiety, and â€Å"other symptoms that have been lumped together a s ‘neuroses (Rohrl 100). The accepted conclusion is that although persons suffering from Wendigo Psychosis have experienced a large amount of mental stress, the fearsome creature itself does not in fact exist.Like many other mythological creatures, the Wendigo was placed in Native American legend to explain things that the natives could not understand at the time, and to enforce the rules of the community. Psychologist Lou Marano ultimately went further in a 1982 article stating that Wendigos had never existed, at least as people overcome by cannibal desires. Instead, he adopted a functionalist interpretation (influenced by scholarship on the Salem Witch trials), arguing that the Wendigo was a phenomenon that allowed Algonquians to kill the marginal, the mentally ill, and the unpopular (Smallman 575).Works Cited Atwood, Margret. â€Å"Cannibal Lecture. † Saturday Night 110. 9 (1995): 81-90. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Brightman, Robert A. â€Å"The Windigo in the Materia l World. † Ethnohistory 35. 4 (1988): 337-79. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Carlson, Nathan D. â€Å"Reviving Witiko (Windigo): An Ethnohistory of â€Å"Cannibal Monsters† in the Athabasca District of Northern Alberta, 1878–1910. † Ethnohistory 56. 3 (2009): 355-94. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Ferrara, Nadia, and Guy Lanoue. â€Å"The Self in Northern Canadian Hunting Societies: ‘Cannibals' and Other ‘Monsters' as Agents of Healing. Anthropologica 46. 1 (2004): 69-83. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Grinnell, George Bird. â€Å"Pawnee Mythology. † Journal of American Folklore 6. 21 (1893): 113-30. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Podruchny, Carolyn. â€Å"Werewolves and Windigos: Narratives of Cannibal Monsters in French-Canadian Voyageur Oral Tradition. † Ethnohistory 51. 4 (2004): 677-700. Project Muse. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Rohrl, Vivian J. â€Å"A Nutritional Factor in Windigo Psychosis. † American Anthropologist ns 72. 1 (1970): 97-101. JS TOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Ridington, Robin. Wechuge and Windigo: A Comparison of Cannibal Belief among Boreal Forest Athapaskans and Algonkians. † Anthropologica ns 18. 2 (1976): 107-29. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. Smallman, Shawn. â€Å"Spirit Beings, Mental Illness, and Murder: Fur Traders and the Windigo in Canada’s Boreal Forest, 1774 to 1935. † Ethnohistory 57. 4 (2010): 371-95. Duke Journals. Web. 28 Mar. 2013. . Smith, Theresa S. and Fiore, Jill M. â€Å"Landscape as Narrative, Narrative as Landscape. † Studies in American Indian Literatures 22. 4 (2010): 58-80. JSTOR. Web. 28 Mar. 2013.

Earth Liberation Front Essay

With over 600 criminal acts resulting to more than $100 million in property damages, the Earth Liberation Front has been dubbed as the most active and destructive domestic terrorist group in the United States by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Unlike international terrorism, mostly carried out by Muslim radicals seeking â€Å"Holy War† with America, domestic terrorism falls under the category of special interest extremists according to the FBI, the lead agency in counterterrorism. Special interest extremists conduct acts of politically motivated violence to force segments of society, including the general public, to change attitudes about issues considered important to their causes. These groups occupy the extreme fringes of animal rights, pro-life, environmental, antinuclear, and other movements (FBI, 1999, p. 20). The ELF conducts random economic sabotage by destroying facilities and industries involve in logging, genetic engineering, energy production and auto making to prevent the exploitation of the natural environment. The group believes that in order to preserve the earth’s ecological balance they have to tear down the U. S. capitalist economic system that continually abuses nature for profit. James F. Jarboe, FBI’s Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, testified in 2002 before the U. S. congress describing the ELF as the top domestic terror group which could become a serious threat to nuclear sites. In 2005, the U. S. Department of Homeland Security branded ELF as the most aggressive terrorist element among the radical environmental movement. Members, who call themselves â€Å"Elves†, engage in a new brand of hostility named eco-terrorism. They are committed to defend their cause by all means necessary through direct actions and revolutionary violence. Due to the autonomous nature of the movement with no formal chain of command, law enforcement agencies admitted that they have difficulty in infiltrating the group despite several major arrests and indictments. The FBI alleged that William C. Rodgers was the leader of the group. He was arrested in December 2005 but committed suicide while in jail using a plastic bag. ELF’s base of operation is mainly located in Canada, United Kingdom, and United States. Origin: ELF originated in 1992 in Brighton, England devoted to protect and save the environment. It was established by a more radical group of activists known as Earth First who thinks that criminal acts like economic sabotage would better advanced its cause rather than legal protests. The name was derived from another movement Animal Liberation Front (ALF) who likewise use the same method in promoting their ideals of liberating the animals from abuse. The two organizations forged alliance in 1997 and have claimed more than 1,200 criminal acts causing over $100 million in property damages for the past 15 years. Members employ illegal direct actions by using arson in confronting companies and practices they see as abusive and immoral. With such tactic they hope to impose economic loss or cripple business operations. ELF surfaced in America in 1996 by burning a U. S. Forest Service truck in Oregon’s Willamette National Forest and spray-painted the building with anti-logging slogans. Since then, ELF continued attacking big businesses year after year becoming the most wanted terrorist group. The movement is funded by wealthy benefactors and other allied organizations sympathetic to its cause like the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA). Organization, Ideology and Tactics: ELF is an underground movement with a decentralize structure. It is a loose network of small groups or individuals who sympathize with the movement. Anyone can be a member as long as he or she simply follows the ELF’s guidelines: to inflict maximum economic damage on those profiting from the destruction and exploitation of the natural environment, to reveal to, and to educate the public about the atrocities committed against the earth and all species that populate it and to take all necessary precautions against harming life (Rosebraugh, 2004, p. 18). The group is practically invisible with no official members, leaders or spokesperson. In this manner, they can continue to freely fight for their cause without the fear of being imprisoned and this practice has been proven to be very effective. The group is rooted in an ideology that considers all living organisms on earth possess moral rights and deserve equal care as the humans. In addition, the ELF also believes in deep ecology favoring the rollback of civilization and restoring the environment damaged by selfish interests brought about by the industrial age. This philosophy maintains that modernization has created endless injustices on the planet that will lead to the destruction of human existence on earth and the extinction of wildlife habitat. ELF recognizes that the environmental movement has failed to bring the message across and brought about changes in preserving the environment. The legal protests did not catch the attention of the public and the government but instead laws have encouraged many big businesses to profit from the exploitation of the earth’s natural resources. Members of the group believe that it is within their rights to protect the environment and enforce the natural law. They accomplish their mission in many innovative tactics or techniques. Their primary weapon is arson burning various properties, research laboratories, vehicles, equipment, and buildings. They would use crude incendiary devices like candles that are attached to a plastic jugs filled with gasoline. They use booby trapped letters with poisoned razor blades and issue death threats to exploiters. Members also engage in vandalism by spray painting their targets as well as break windows and glue locks. In addition, the ELF advocates â€Å"monkeywrenching,† a euphemism for acts of sabotage and property destruction against industries and other entities perceived to be damaging to the natural environment. â€Å"Monkeywrenching† includes tree spiking, arson, sabotage of logging or construction equipment, and other types of property destruction (FBI, 2002,  ¶10). Their main goal is merely to channel public attention to their cause and not kill people. So far of all the criminal acts the group committed there has been no single human casualty reported. The group has become effective in their campaign while eluding authorities because of its leaderless resistance. Leaderless resistance is a technique by which terrorist groups can carry out violent acts while reducing the risk of infiltration by law enforcement elements. The basic principle of leaderless resistance is that there is no centralized authority or chain-of-command. The various cells are linked by shared ideology but otherwise are autonomous, for the most part unconnected and unknown to each other (Leader & Probst, 2004, p. 2). Before an attack is executed, the group plans carefully its every move. Members would thoroughly study the target with video and photo surveillance, conduct intelligence gathering, and research the industry. In 2001, the ELF came out with a handbook entitled Setting Fires with Electrical Timers: An Earth Liberation Front Guide. The 37-page manual details how to assemble an Old-Fashioned Kitchen Timer and a SCR Digital Timer complete with instructions, tips, diagrams, materials, and tools needed. It advises members on the rules of a successful arson, where to place incendiary devices, and fuel requirements to burn down a building. Currently, ELF has launched a nationwide campaign of arson against genetic engineering and genetically modified organism activities. The group believes that these actions, genetically alternating life forms, are types of oppression and destruction. In its Illegal Incidents Report: A 25 Year History of Illegal Activities by Eco and Animal Extremists, the Foundation for Medical Research in Washington, D. C. noted that both ELF and its partner ALF were responsible for 529 attacks against research facilities, universities, drug discovery companies, and various organizations from 1981 to 2005. The assaults were made up of vandalism (45%), theft (23%), harassment (15%), arson (10%), and bombing (7%). According to U. S. law enforcement, radical environmentalism currently poses the most visible homegrown threat to the national security of the United States. As recently as June 2004, the FBI designated â€Å"eco-terrorism†Ã¢â‚¬â€the use of or threat to use violence in protest of harm inflicted on animals and the world’s biosphere—as the country’s number one militant challenge emanating from inside its own borders (Chalk, Hoffman, Reville, & Kasupski, 2006, p. 47). Criminal Activities: This shadowy movement has unprecedented record of criminal activities that continuously threaten American society and democracy. Their history of violence expands across the U. S. hitting various institutions such as government, private citizens, education, and other forms of development. In 1997, ELF burned down the Bureau of Land Management horse corral in Oregon and on the following year set fire on a ski resort in Vail, Colorado that resulted in $12 million in damages. The group set seven separate fires destroying three buildings and damaging four chairlifts. The FBI considered this event as the most destructive act of eco-terrorism in U. S. history. In 1999, ELF radicals were involved in the burning of an 8,000 square-foot structure of the Boise Cascade logging company in Monmouth, Oregon and the destruction of the Agricultural Hall of the Michigan State University. In September 8, 2001, the group burned a McDonald outlet in Tucson causing $500,000 in damages. In 2003, this extremist set fire on a housing complex that was under construction in San Diego knocking down a five-storey building and a 100-foot crane. The damage was estimated at $50 million. Six weeks later, they burned three other houses that were being built within the area. In addition, the ELF assaulted three car dealers in Southern California setting ablaze 40 Hummers and SUVs amounting to $2 million in damages. The group vandalized the cars by painting the words â€Å"Fat Lazy Americans†. They did the same in Los Angeles where 125 sport utility vehicles were also vandalized and burned inside auto dealer shops and along the neighborhood. According to FBI investigations the ELF were responsible for attacking vehicle dealerships and construction sites. In February 2005, the group burned down a new Pinewoods apartment complex in Sutter Creek, California with an incendiary device leaving a graffiti that said â€Å"We Will Win – ELF†. Five months after, the same group torched two homes that were under construction in Whatcom County, Washington causing $100,000 in damages to the other house while the other one was destroyed. They also vandalized and damaged a number of construction equipment. The arson campaign went on in 2006 with the burning of more houses. In Camano Island, Washington, the ELF set fire on a 9,600 square foot trophy house worth $3 million. In its official communication made in 1997, the ELF declared their struggle to free all species in the planet. We are the burning rage of this dying planet. The war of greed ravages the earth and species die out every day. ELF works to speed up the collapse of industry, to scare the rich, and to undermine the foundations of the state. We embrace social and deep ecology as a practical resistance movement. We have to show the enemy that we are serious about defending what is sacred. Together we have teeth and claws to match our dreams. Our greatest weapons are imagination and the ability to strike when least expected (Pickering, 2007, p. 10). Operation Backfire: In response to the attacks, the FBI initiated in 2004 Operation Backfire intended to investigate acts of terrorism by the ELF. It put together several independent investigation bodies from the agency’s Portland, Oregon field office and rounded up suspected eco-terrorists. Seven people were arrested in four different states. They were Stanislas Meyerhoff, Chelsea Gerlach, Daniel McGowan, Darren Thurston, Kevin Tubbs, William Rodgers, and Kendall Tankersley. In addition, five others were taken into custody namely Jonathan Paul, Josephine Overaker, Rebecca Rubin, Suzanne Savoie and Joseph Dibee. Federal prosecutors together with U. S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales indicted in 2006 11 suspects with 65 counts of conspiracy charges to commit arson in Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, Colorado and California. Many of those apprehended turned informants for the government. The arrests and indictments were the outcome of a nine-year old investigation on the series of arsons in America where the ELF claimed responsibility. The operation is on going around the country. Those participating in the investigation besides the FBI are the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), the Eugene Police Department, the Portland Police Bureau, the Oregon State Police, the U. S. Forest Service, the U. S. Bureau of Land Management, the U. S. Department of Agriculture, the Oregon Department of Justice and the Lane County Sheriff’s Office. Some of those arrested have been convicted of the crime in U. S. Federal Courts. They are as follows: Stanislas Meyerhoff – 13 years, Kevin Tubbs – 12 years 7 months, Chelsea Gerlach – 9 years, Kendall Tankersley – 3 years 10 months, Suzanne Savoie – 4 years 3 months, Darren Thurston – 3 years 1 month, Daniel McGowan – 7 years, Jonathan Paul – Sentencing in abeyance, Joyanna Zacher – 7 years 8 months and Nathan Block – 7 years 8 months (DOJ, 2007,  ¶4). Other suspects were released on bails while some were placed on restrictions pending their trial. A few decided to cooperate while the rest remain imprisoned. Operation backfire was highly criticized because of coercion and paid informants. Other sectors called the bold move unconstitutional but Atty. General Gonzales argued that such acts only constitute violent criminal activity, which may violate the right of every U. S. citizen. Conclusion Terrorist groups like the ELF are anti-progress and as long as development continues they will not stop their modus operandi in terrorizing the public and businesses, which already have incurred heavy losses. The scenario is extremely dangerous and alarming. It is imperative that authorities and intelligence organizations have to assess the threat and study the behavior of these terrorists who are becoming more advanced and knowledgeable in their strategies. There is a need for effective counterstrategies to detect and prevent acts of terror at the same time proper allocation of resources in order to efficiently combat these adversaries. As a loose organization, ELF could become even more dangerous because its members do not follow any rules. The group constantly poses great risk to the country’s democracy, endangers American lives and undermines the constitution that guarantees protection to the citizens. There is also possibility that such group could turn violence as a way of life and spread its corrupt ideals to the younger generation, which is already affected by media violence. For the government to combat this kind of domestic terrorism, it has to take more proactive actions in preventing further destructions to the economy. While doing so, its programs should remain within the framework of freedom without violating one’s constitutional rights. Authorities must strengthen their intelligence network to prevent arson attacks. Though the ELF has its right to voice their concerns, they must be contained and stopped immediately. References FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation). (1999). Terrorism in the United States 1999. Counterterrorism. 30 Years of Terrorism: A Special Retrospective Edition. Threat Assessment and Warning Unit Counterterrorism Division. Report. Federal Bureau of Investigation Rosebraugh, C. (2004). Burning Rage of a Dying Planet (P): Speaking for the Earth Liberation. Lantern Books, New York. Leader, S. H. & Probst, P. (2004). The Earth Liberation Front and Environmental Terrorism. Retrieved December 2, 2007, from http://cjc. delaware. gov/PDF/ELF%20ALF%20article. pdf Chalk, P. (2006). Trends in Terrorism: Threats to the United States and the Future of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act. RAND monograph series. RAND Center for Terrorism Risk Management Policy. RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA. ISBN: 0833038222 Pickering, L. J. (2007). Earth Liberation Front 1997-2002. Arissa Media Group; 2nd ed. , New York. FBI. (2002). Testimony of James F. Jarboe, Domestic Terrorism Section Chief, Counterterrorism Division, FBI Before the House Resources Committee, Subcommittee on Forests and Forest Health. http://www. fbi. gov/congress/congress02/jarboe021202. htm DOJ (Department of Justice). (2007). Final Sentencing Hearing Held in Case of Earth Liberation Front (ELF) and Animal Liberation Front for Acts of Eco-Terrorism in Five Western States. Press Release. Retrieved December 2, 2007, from http://portland. fbi. gov/dojpressrel/2007/elfsentencing080307. htm

Helens Trading Card Company Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Helens Trading Card Company - Case Study Example We will examine the role that a Systems Development Methodology and its associated System Development Life Cycle (SDLC) will play in designing an information system for Helen's company. To have insight into the background, I will portray it briefly. Helen started off her company when an online trading card company asked her to buy and sell its cards for it. Initially, we can say that it was very small scale because before that, she would only buy trading cards for her son. Soon afterwards, she started her own company and became an authorized trader. This meant that now she now had more information to manage and use. Her company must have been small because trading cards is not a large-scale business as it is. But she still had information to manage hence she needed a system that would help her deal with all this information about her stakeholders. This, indeed, would be an Information System. Helen has a few requirements for which she needs an information system. According to these requirements, a Systems Development Methodology and its associated model, the JAD model, in our case will be used to develop this information system. Helen needs a system that will enable her to store details about the individual trading cards which she has for sale, as well as packs of structure decks, and games mats, etc. She needs a system that will store information about her received orders. ... Why are we discussing her requirements It is important to understand these requirements as the first step towards developing a system, using any model of the Systems Development Methodology. If we fail to understand the requirements, we will certainly fail to provide her what she wants and then no matter, what model or methodology is used, the system will fail (Pressman, R.S., 2005). Information System - What is it An Information System is a framework or a structure of any sort that would enable and facilitate Helen to process her data and manage her information. There are many different kinds of systems that keep changing as technology grows (Betts, G., 2007). She has so much information about the companies that she buys from, the customers that she sells to, the orders that she receives and the products that she makes. It will much simpler for us if we break down all these requirements and view them in isolation. First of all, Helen needs to deal with the information regarding her suppliers. A supplier could be any company or person which Helen purchases cards from. Helen wants to store information about what she has bought, who she bought it from and how much she paid for it. According to most analysts, her requirements fit perfectly with a Supply Chain Management System. She will be able to handle her suppliers effectively with this. But if she is handling only her suppliers, where does her customer and order management fit For this, she could invest in a Customer Relationship Management System. This way she can understand her customers, give them value and retain profitable ones. Those who are not profitable can be studied

Farewell to manzanar Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Farewell to manzanar - Essay Example The familys loyalty was to America. However, Jeannes father was arrested two weeks after Pearl Harbor. When the family moves to Terminal Island with Jeannes brother, Woody, the family realizes how different they are. All of Woodys neighbors only speak Japanese, not English. This makes the Wakatsukis uncomfortable. When President Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, the Watatsukis fate was sealed. They were forced to the Manzanar camp in California. This internment camp served to keep Japanese-Americans interred for the term of World War II. The Japanese-American Citizens League helped organize the Japanese-Americans be sent to the internment camps. Later these types of organizations would be considered inu, or traitors, for helping the military send their people to the camps without protest. Manzanar is very dusty. Dust covers everything. Privacy is not as abundant as the dust. In fact, there was not any privacy for the internees at Manzanar. Jeannes mother used cardboard boxes to protect herself when using the latrine. The latrine and barracks were also very dirty and unsanitary. The camp kitchen was extremely unsanitary. Contaminated food frequently made the internees sick. This made the camp internees candidates for immunizations. The old and young alike had to get shots. It was not like even modern day prisons, but much worse. Manzanar fostered family division. Every adult in the camp had to hold down a job. Jeannes mother was a dietitian in the camp kitchen. Meals were what the author missed the most. Families could not sit down and share meals. Adults ate at one time, while children ate at another in separate parts of the camp. The camp was very crowded, forcing the Wakatsukis to share a room at first. Despite the close quarters at night, the family was driven apart during the day. Before Pearl Harbor, Jeannes father was a proud man. He earned

Media and Violence in the USA Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Media and Violence in the USA - Assignment Example This statistics is frightening; why there is so much violence in the United States and what can be done to reduce it, is a question that has puzzled governments, psychologists and social scientists. US Department of Justice figures showed that 2.8 million children (under 18) were arrested in 1997, nearly 2500 juveniles were arrested for murder, and 121000 were arrested for other violent crimes [Cantor, 2000]. Psychologists believe that seeds for attitude towards violence are sown early in life. This has resulted in many studies on the impact of TV, video, video games, and other media accessible to children at home. [Eron, 1963] and [Eron & Huesman, 1986] Huesman of University of Michigan carried out a long term study of the viewing habits of a group of children for decades, They astonishingly claimed that watching violence on television was an even more powerful factor in promoting violence than poverty, race, or parental behavior. This 1960 study followed up 11 and 22 years later and claims to show that the aggressive eight-year-olds of 1960 grew up to become even more aggressive 19- and 30-year-olds, with greater troubles-including domestic violence than their less aggressive counterparts who did not watch as much television [Eron & Huesman, 1986]. Eron & Huesman list dozens of other studies in support of their arguments that Violence on Media is harmful to children and eventually to society. [Senate Committee, 1999] reported that more than 1,000 studies on the effects of television and film violence have been done during the past 40 years. American Medical Association, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, and the National Institute of Mental Health have separately reviewed many of these studies and all of these bodies conclude television violence leads to real-world violence.

Human Growth and Behaviour Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Human Growth and Behaviour - Research Paper Example Erikson expressed the notion that every stage of growth has its distinctive challenges, referred to as crises. He held that such egocentric crises offered challenges to the identity of an individual (Riley and Erikson, 1979). Successful psychosocial development or personality development relies on addressing and overpowering these responsibilities or crises. The first stage of development and the crisis faced by the child involves the basic trust versus basic mistrust of an infant, which emphasizes that when parents meet all the needs of an infant, trust develops automatically. â€Å"The basic strength of the first stage is hope or the expectation that difficulties in life, presenting whatever challenge they may, will eventually result in a positive outcome† (Archer, 2011). Accordingly, the infant would require this sense of hope at his subsequent stages of behavioral development to meet any impending challenges (Lawler, 2002). The weakness of this stage or rather the direct o pposite of hope is the hopelessness and withdrawal. Jimmy Lee felt hopeless during his infancy because both his parents worked at their restaurant for long hours, leaving their son under the care of other Scottish friends and relatives who looked after his interchangeably for the first two years of his life. The second stage, autonomy, and shame during toddlerhood involve parents who generate supportive and caring surroundings to let the toddlers study and apply independence and gain their personal confidence.

Universal truths and God Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Universal truths and God - Essay Example In the essay, On Truth and Lies in a Nonmoral Sense Nietzsche expresses his views on the problem of universal truths and the belief of God as a universal truth. Nietzsche accepts that 'truth' means every idea or view. 'Truth' is exercised by people who have power and can spread it using this power. His various remarks in which terms like 'truth' and God figure can be rendered collectively coherent only if they are viewed as efforts on his part both to accept and analyze the ways in which such terms function in particular domains of discourse.Nietzsche says that something or other means truth of the world, with respect to human nature, or concerning what ordinarily passes for truth, it should not be assumed that his observations about the nature of what ordinarily passes for truth are meant to apply without qualification to these assertions. He considers the latter to have the same sort of warrant that commonplace or scientific 'truths' are suggested to have. (Leary 267). Nietzsche st ates: "every people has a similarly mathematically divided conceptual heaven above themselves and henceforth thinks that truth demands that each conceptual god be sought only within his own sphere" (Nietzsche n.d.). Nietzsche underlines the nature and scope of universal truth, the cognitive significance of perceptual experience and scientific and logical reasoning, and the conditions under which various kinds of knowledge may be considered true, means issues which cannot be settled prior to the consideration of all substantive questions. They can be dealt with properly only within the context of a general understanding of man's nature and his relation to the world, drawing upon their exploration from a variety of perspectives (Leary 270). In the sassy, Nietzsche speaks of 'truth' and 'knowledge", but these terms do not have a single sense and reference in all of their occurrences. In some cases they should be understood as they have traditionally been employed by philosophers with commitments to certain sorts of metaphysical positions of which he is highly critical (Neighbors 227). In other instances they should be understood as referring to what ordinarily passes for 'truth' or 'knowledge' among non-philosophers, and to the most that truth and knowledge can amount to in everyday or scientific affairs. "He [a man] is indifferent toward pure knowledge which has no consequences; toward those truths which are possibly harmful and destructive he is even hostilely inclined" (Nietzsche n.d.). The universal truth holds true of our 'spiritual' faculties - including our cognitive powers, no less than of our more basic functions. He does not present direct arguments for this position; but he would appear to consider at least something of the sort as a consequence of the supposition that there is no transcendent Deity. Once the existence of such a Deity is dismissed, he takes the ground cut out from under anyone who would give a non-naturalistic account of the origin and nature of any of man's faculties (Neighbors 227). There then can be no 'religious sanction and guarantee of our senses and rationality' of the sort to which Descartes and others appealed; and this renders the idea 'that thinking means a measure of actuality' a piece of 'moralistic trustfulness' which is quite without warrant. Thus he considers intellectual integrity to demand not that one refrain from presupposing anything along the lines indicated above (Neighbors 227), but rather that one make these presuppo sitions and not shrink from their consequences for various further philosophical questions, such as those arising in epistemology. "When a god in the shape of a bull can drag away maidens, when even the goddess Athena herself is suddenly seen in the company of Peisastratus then, as in a dream, anything is possible at each moment, and all of nature swarms around man as if it were nothing but a masquerade of the gods" (Nietzsche, n.d.). Any such understanding will

Term paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words - 1

Term Paper Example These two distinctive and great philosophers of their time has critically analyzed the sources of morality and the way it affects humans in conducting various actions or making different decisions. Introduction Ethics covers wide areas of human life similarly it has great significance in the overall societal boundaries and social welfare. Morality and ethics are often used interchangeably because on the communal level they both represent the difference between right and wrong, good and bad. Morals actually directs minor to major human actions, motives and desires. It often happens that you want to do something really crazy; however, you stop yourself from committing any offense just because of social morals or ethical conduct. This happens with almost everyone in the world and therefore we must pay tribute to ethics and moral principles which actually alleviate evil human desires and taught us the just way of living a life. Morals are not only limited to the difference and recognitio n of good and bad deeds rather they have a very broad spectrum which widens through the social justice to the animal rights. Obligations towards the poor, declination of suicidal activities, preservation of natural environment, protection of government assets and above all paying respect to every individual comes under the ethical and moral principles (Singer). In the contemporary world people often believe that morality and ethics have gone out of date and that these vague ideas actually stop humans from effusively enjoying life or fulfilling the human desires in whatever way they like. However, reality is far different from the common perception. Ethics are required by humans in order to live a peaceful and contented life. They are responsible to limit the evil desires and also to confront common societal issues. Though humans have made great advancements in last few centuries still their evil side needs to be limited by some effective and efficient moral principles so as to safeg uard the human civilization. Furthermore, morals are wrongly considered as the list of prohibitions rather they should be better understood as a set of considerations regarding our natural environment, social set up and overall human development (Singer). Peter Singer has presented a substantial form of moral sphere which is commonly associated with the theory of Utilitarianism. This moral sphere has primarily two distinctive parts which provides a better understanding of the overall concept of ethics and morals. Peter Singer has made a greater emphasis over the application of morals in human lives since people especially philosophers frequently talk about the importance of ethics but they hardly emphasize upon its application in personal and collective lives. In broader terms Utilitarianism is a complex combination of two doctrines namely; theory of what is good and the theory of what is right. Things which appear correct are often regarded as unethical due to the bad aspects attac hed to them similarly things which seem good are again rejected by the morality principles because of their association to some wrong actions (Singer). However, the moral sphere of Singer is closely related to the consequences of deeds and actions. For instance, things which are categorized as right would always bring good or positive consequences. As mentioned previously that Singer’

Structural theory and family development applied to a hypothetical Assignment

Structural theory and family development applied to a hypothetical case - Assignment Example The nurse will also work in collaboration with the spiritual leaders to uplift hope in life Ungar (2010). Additionally, the nurse will be instrumental in seeking the assistance of local or government authority that would offer them help, in this case Mrs. Jones. In this particular scenario, family structural and development theory can be of great help. In the case of household development theory, the family as a unit is viewed in biological, social and psychological perspective and development. For the event of the biological needs, the member of the family in needs, will be taken care of more. For the babies in the family, will need more of the care than the teenage. The biological need for the chronically ill patient needs to be more than the healthy one. According Ungar (2010) the social development of the family can be affected by the culture and the society and development. For the nurse taking care of the family need to put the culture and the society in consideration. The psychological development of the family can be compared with individual stage of growth. Since in this scenario the family is mature, and the mother has grandchildren, so the approach needs to be mature. The family structural theory, on the other hand, the persons character is a function of our relations with others. This family behavior will be developed in accordance with relation with others. This family has many relations where the widow is a mother with the chronic illness, the daughter who is the bread winner and the grandchildren. The interrelation of the family needs to be robust to have good behavior in the family. Family education in this scenario is very vital. The information is given on how to live positively and reinforced with knowledge to help this family to have control over and allow them have improved health. This will enable the family to shift the focus from just the behavior

Social Entrepreneurship Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 3

Social Entrepreneurship - Essay Example ddle financial institutions has not been experienced making the social enterprises to result to crowdfunding as the major source of revenue (Othmar, 2012). To assist the social enterprises to generate more revenue and improve the UK social sectors, the Social Finance pays the social organizations such as Peterborough prisons that reduce the number of reconvictions by 7.5 per cent. To mitigate financial problems, crowdfunding has been adopted as one of the avenues of raising capital, debt and equity finance as well as seeking for donations. Crowdfunding entails motivating a large number of audiences for example via the social sites to contribute towards the financial kit of the social enterprises. Additionally, entrepreneurs are now focused at other sources of funds including leasing companies that provide office equipments especially when there is stability in the cash flows (Weerawardena and Mort, 2006). In the same way, government agencies have also been involved to provide subsidies, credits and grants. These are significant especially for the projects that can be managed sustainably. For the small entrepreneurial initiatives, bootstrapping has been the major source of income. The additional sources of revenue for instance crowdfunding can work especially based on the increased use of social sites such as face book and twitter. Since the public, banks and the government are aimed at creating a strong linkage, Ridley-Duff (2009) argues that the solutions to financial issues that social enterprises are facing will be effective. Othmar, M.2012. Literature Review and Research Agenda for Crowdfunding of Social Ventures. Research colloquium on social entrepreneurship. University of Oxford, Skoll Center of SAID Business School, 1,

The Role of Behavior and Cognition in Learning Essay Example for Free

The Role of Behavior and Cognition in Learning Essay Learning is an integral part of psychological development. Many perspectives exist concerning learning. Two areas of interest in psychology concerning learning are behavior and cognition. Two theories that explain fundamental learning is classical conditioning and operant conditioning. These two theories also show the correlations of learning and behavior. Theories concerning the relationship between cognition and learning are of particular interest in psychology. Some theorists believe behavioral changes are the direct results of learning because the effects learning have on behavior and the relationship of cognition concerning learning. Defining learning and the role of behavior in learning The definition of learning has two aspects concerning behavior. First learning creates a permanent change in behavior comparatively. Second, learning is the behavioral potential that results from acquired experiences’. Variables such as illness, fatigue, and chemical substances will alter behavior. However, these factors are not conducive to the theory of relatively permanent behavioral changes and the potentiality for learning, which changes behavior. Learning cannot be measured easily because it purely a mental function. One can only observe the learning process through the behavioral changes that occur (Olson Hergenhahn, 2009). Therefore, independent variables such as experience, which creates an intervening variable such as learning that produces dependent variables, which cause behavioral changes. Experiences are a result of environmental stimulus that many organisms process and adapt their behavior to meet their needs. With most organisms, this learning involves nothing more than learning what the environment has to offer in the form of basic needs such as food, water, and shelter. In addition, an organism would want to know what is harmful or dangerous in that environment. The organism would know through experience what benefits the organisms’ survival and what to avoid. These experiences would cause behavioral changes observable to others (Olson Hergenhahn, 2009). Two observable types of learning Two types of learning that show observable results of behavioral changes are classical and operant conditioning. Ivan Petrovich Pavlov first observed classical conditioning from research concerning his work on the physiology of digestion. Using dogs Pavlov was researching how the stomach produced gastric secretions in dogs. The research inadvertently had produced gastric secretions without feeding the dogs. He decided to modify the studies and measure salivation (Clark, 2004). This research produced Experimental psychology and psychopathology in animals (Clark, 2004, p. 283 para 1), which Pavlov published. Pavlov called the phenomenon classical conditioning. He conducted research to prove his theories. Salivation is a reflexive response or unconditioned response that happens when food an unconditioned stimulus is introduced to dogs. Both these responses happen naturally. Pavlov introduced a neutral stimulus a bell and there was no response from the dog. However, when Pavlov introduced the bell and food to the dog for a consistent period the dog came to expect food when the bell was rang. The unconditioned stimulus then involved the bell and food, which created the unconditioned response of salivation. Pavlov eliminated the food and when the bell rung; the dog salivated. The bell became the conditioned response, which made the dog salivate this became a conditioned response. The dog learned through association. This means the dog associated the two events happening simultaneously and responded to those events behaviorally (Clark, 2004). Operant conditioning is a second type of learning. Many theorists believe that the learning processes are unobservable except through behavioral changes. The exception to this widespread belief among cognitive scientists is B. F. Skinner who argues that behavioral changes are a direct result of learning. This is known as Type R conditioning as well. Operant conditioning involves escalating the times a response occurs or the likelihood that a response by manipulating the circumstances by reinforcements. The reinforcements ensure the chances that the response will happen again. These reinforcements can be positive or negative. This is not a new concept in behaviorism. Theorists have long known consequences affect behavior and through punishment or reward and positive or negative reinforcement’s behaviors can be taught or learned (B. F. Skinner Foundation, 2011). B. F Skinner created a box that many call the Skinner box today. The box had a food dispenser and a lever for the test subject a Rat. The rat would learn to pull the lever and a door opened and food dispensed. Another experiment showed when denied food from pulling the lever the rat soon lost the desire to pull the lever. The rat lost the urge to pull the lever, which was conducive to popular theories of extinction. Another experiment showed when a light was on in conjunction with the lever or the lever and light was off the rat showed it could discriminate between the light and dark. The rat learned differentiation as well when different amounts of pressure (B. F. Skinner Foundation, 2011). Cognition’s relationship to Learning Both classical and operant conditioning are effective learning tools in human learning and behavior. However, humans exhibit complex behaviors because of certain cognitive abilities. The cogninition abilities of humans are a variable that goes beyond basic animal conditioning. The relationship of cognition concerning learning is important. The root of cognition ‘cogni’ in Greek and Latin mean ‘to learn,’ therefore, the two words are interchangeable. Cognition relates to the mental process of learning such as perception, reasoning, decision making, judgment, memomory, and problem solving. Humans learn from experiential learning, which is people learn from experience(Kirsch Lynn, 2004). Cognition not only establishes what is experinced but also what is affected by experiences. Cognition is important because it allows two situations to happen assimilation and accommodation, which helps an organism interact with the environment. Sensory input is processed from the environment and mentally processed. The perceptional output interprets the sensory input and deciphers the information. Cognitions role in learning allows people to experience the physical through a biological stimulus and use the knowledge gained to make choices that benefit them or helps them avoid unpleasent experiences (Olson Hergenhahn, 2009). Two areas of interest in psychology concerning learning are behavior and cognition. Learning is intregral to human behavior and cognition. Learning can be aquried many ways. Two types of learning involve classical conditioning and operant conditioning, which correlates to how organisms and people behave. Cognition is important to learning because it allows two situations to happen assimilation and accommodation, which helps an organism interact with the environment. Without this experiential learning, people learning from experience, learning would be impossible. Behavioral changes are the direct result of learning because the affect learning has on behavior and the relationship of cognition concerning learning.

Voter Turnout in Mauritius

Voter Turnout in Mauritius OVERVIEW OF MAURITIUS Mauritius is reflected as one of the best-governed, most established and prosperous African countries. It is an autonomous state that has supported the development of its people since independence in 1968. In general, the government of Mauritius has achieved the economy soundly, with relative fiscal transparency, good facility of education, sanitation, water and health services (EISA, 2008). The Mauritian Constitution’s main features comprise the rule of law and strict separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary. The country has succeeded its ethnic, religious and cultural diversity with maturity and tolerance. The animated business climate has been favorable to investment, with refined financial and communications infrastructure. Compared to other African countries, as well as many developing and developed countries across a range of governance measures, Mauritius appears at or near the top of the rankings. Mauritius has been continually a Dutch, Portuguese, French and British colony. It became self-governing of Great Britain on 12 March 1968 and granted to the position of Republic inside the Commonwealth on 12 March 1992. While many countries can express of their freedom by means of being powered by pro-self-government sentimentality, Mauritius experienced a changed situation altogether: no nationalist sentiment happened in Mauritius. Anti-colonial feelings were articulated by the Hindu majority but large divisions of the added ethno-religious crowds favored to uphold bonds with the mother nation. Mauritius was allocated as given its way towards independence: 44% of the inhabitants voted in contradiction of independence, but independence was lastly approved to Mauritius in 1968. The Constitution of independent Mauritius demonstrated after the Westminster system, is the â€Å"bedrock of Mauritian democracy† (Mohamed Bhai, 2002). Critics have pointed out that contribution of the p ublic in the political process at regional, local and national levels flinches and finishes at the election booth on polling day. In spite of the strains and clashes preceding independence and terror of the large ‘Hindu hegemony’, Mauritius has never industrialized a ‘bullet’ culture, embracing instead a culture of the ‘ballot’. Post-independent Mauritius has had a reasonably sound track record of holding free and fair general elections since independence deprived of any major contestations. Elections have been held in 1976, 1982, 1993, 1987, 1991, 1995, 2000 and 2005. Procedures before, during and after elections are well valued by all political parties. It is imperative to note, that there has existed a ‘problem’ of incumbency whereby the ruling party has made use of its unfair access to the state media and other capitals. Voter turnout throughout general elections inclines to be relatively high – 81.5 % for the 2005 general election (see the table 3.1.) – But there is a scarcity of study in the country regarding voting patterns and behavior. Studies in the broad field of political science are missing and research on the gender width of politics is even smaller. Table 3.1. Voter Turnout: 1976-2014 Year The year the election took place or a law was passed Voter Turn ­out Total vote Regi ­Ã‚ ­stration VAP Turn ­out Voting age popu ­Ã‚ ­lation Popu ­lation 2014 74.41% 697,231 936,975 71.23% 978,887 1,331,155 2010 77.82% 684,768 879,897 72.63% 942,840 1,213,000 2005 81.25% 664,081 817,356 75.34% 881,457 1,242,821 2000 80.87% 630,292 779,433 79.57% 792,125 1,174,772 1995 79.69% 567,810 712,513 77.09% 736,560 1,116,000 1991 84.08% 573,419 682,000 82.45% 695,500 1,070,000 1987 85.00% 543,565 639,488 84.63% 642,320 1,036,000 1983 87.04% 470,008 540,000 77.04% 610,080 992,000 1982 90% 486,000 540,000 91.46% 531,360 984,000 1976 400,486 84.43% 474,350 894,000 Source: http://www.idea.int/vt/countryview.cfm?CountryCode=MU There is freedom of association which permits political parties to function without restrictions. But, every political party must be recorded with the Electoral Supervisory Commission (ESC) at least 14 days prior to the nomination of its candidates at any general election. Mauritius marks 1 for political rights and 2 for civil liberties on the Freedom House Index, giving it an average of 1.5, and organizing the country in the ‘free’ group. The Freedom House Index of 1 for political rights reproduces the general freedom of rights and association for all political parties as well as the unrestricted general rights to vote afforded all Mauritian citizens irrespective of race, color, creed and gender. The inferior score for civil liberties designates that there are some restrictions in the country, and more work necessities to be done to broaden the democratic space. For example, trade unions do not have the right to go on strike; they are presently requesting for the right to strike to be involved in the constitution. Democratic governance, this report claims, is not only about having regular and nonviolent alternation of parties through elections that are managed by an well-organized institutional framework accepted across a broad range, it is also about political parties evaluating and accepting the needs of the people and determining and framing policies that respond to those needs. In short, self-governing governance is about economic and social engineering that affords for sustainable human expansion. Although it is true that good actions of legitimacy comprise levels of voter participation, the tendency and enthusiasm of all stakeholders to accept results, and the commitment to participation by political parties, state legitimacy rest on the nature of state society relations, the kind of social contract that is in place, and the suitable illustration of all groups in government. Despite of all these, Mauritius is considered as a successful democracy in the African context. Storey (1997) has debated, though, that Mauritius is a business state where decisions on main issues are lashed outside Parliament, after bargaining between the state and various strong corporate bodies like trade unions, employersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã… ¸ federation, socio-religious bodies, sociocultural clusters, and so on. The annual compensation rate to employees has remained for long the result of tripartite negotiations between the state, employers and trade union federations. Reform of education concerning the addition of oriental languages for the Primary School Certificate was debated and negotiated between the State (Ministry of Education), religious bodies and other stakeholders. As far as administrative decisions are concerned, government accesses stakeholders and civil society in general, not only over the budget, but also in the outlining of various legislations. Ad hoc consultative co mmittees connecting different partners are at times set up. As for the implementation of policy, NGOs do have representatives on boards of parastatal or statutory bodies, whereby they are intended to be the relay between organized civil society and the implementation body/agency. According to the EISA Report (2008), the civil society is rather dynamic in Mauritius nevertheless organised civil society appointment with parliament is weak. However, Bunwaree (2007) further claims that, the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) process in Mauritius has been nearly a disastrous one and this may be the best illustration of the softness of the Mauritian organised civil society. On one hand many speak of a lively civil society in Mauritius, while on the other hand the realism is that the country’s civil society organisations are legitimately apathetic with little popular debate (Bunwaree, 2007). Though, civil society has two gadgets to cooperate directly with parliament namely by way of petition and by way of bills supported through a member of parliament. Dukhira (2002) emphasizes that the two vital partners to bring about good governance are government (meaning all state actors such as central government, the civil service and other public authorities) and all the citizens of the country. He assumes that: â€Å"The responsibility devolves on Government, the civil service and the police to achieve social and economic goals, ensure peace and order, exercise authority and enforce laws†. He also adds: â€Å"Participation and citizen involvement should not be mere slogans. (†¦) Nor is participation an end in itself. It is vital to the effective delivery of services and to further democracy. † Moreover, representation and consultation happen in governmental and other public or semipublic institutions that touch groups or the whole population is a fact. Those who are left out from the talks can still have the opportunity to express their views through the media, even though it is the latter which choose which voices are heard. However, the influence of the media to the vivacity of democracy in Mauritius cannot be underestimated. The right to prove also exists, just like the option to start a campaign to care or reject a public or private endeavor. It is thinkable for public gatherings to be organised by citizens and/or organisations to express a position or to voice complaints in contradiction of certain projects, issues, or decisions taken by the Authorities. Organisations are occasionally set up to protest alongside certain projects or issues, and they are now and then successful in making decision-makers review projects that are, for example, not environmentally-friendly (e.g. the case of Vallà ©e de Ferney). However, it is to be pointed out that, certain projects can be announced for political or monetary interests. In 2008, â€Å"Maurice Ile Durable† (MID) is a lengthy term vision set up by the current government, designed at upholding sustainable growth. The key thrust of MID is to create Mauritius a world model of sustainable expansion, chiefly in the background of small-island states. The defense of the environment and the social dimension of improvement are fundamental aspects of MID. At the heart of policy making is consultation with civil society. Since last year, the consultation process for the development of the National Policy for a Sustainable Mauritius has been propelled in guaranteeing that necessities and goals of the Mauritian society are reproduced in the White Paper, which will be submitted to the Cabinet. Several consultative conferences covering of exposed public meetings, special interest groups meetings (NGOs, private sector, women and youth organizations among others), assemblies with district and local government and consultation with the ministries were detained. This consultative process delivers a platform for the diverse stakeholders to contribute in the MID project. From time to time it can be as well too late for the public or any group to respond when decisions have not been made known – not only to the public, but occasionally also to organizations concerned. Information can be at times published in vague newspapers and accordingly, the information not recognized until it is too late to act or react. Even though certain decisions in use by the authorities might be correct, the lack of information, communication, and consultation not just concerning the public, nevertheless regarding current stakeholder bodies authorized for the very specific purpose, as well as experts, or peoples directly alarmed, leave an impression of absence of transparency and of democracy. Babooa (2008) placed specific importance on the role of citizen participation in Mauritius, more accurately in the city of Port Louis. According to him, Mauritian public administration in the colonial era was considered by privacy, restrictive actions and lack of access to information detained by policy-making and policy-implementation government organizations. During the colonial establishment the mainstream of the Mauritians, particularly women, did not have the right to vote and the chance to participate in Mauritian’s governance and administration stated Dukhira (1994). This state of affairs ran to human rights violations, abuse of power, an impassive culture and lack of access to any information concerning the making and implementation of policy alleged by the government institutions. The Mauritian governmental system had arose from a one-sided and â€Å"top-down† approach to policy-making. The impact of the colonial regime is still being touched particularly at th e Port Louis’ local government. If a persistent public boredom and public neglect to participative democracy continues, this could lead to the demise of Mauritian’s unexperienced democracy. The public acts as protectors to encounter the actions or inaction of policymakers and policy implementers. When public participation is ignored, one may see the abuse or misuse of administrative and political power. This was a collective feature in local authorities in Mauritius during the colonial â€Å"top-down† administration which was branded by confidentiality and preventive measures to bind the public from gaining access to and distributing information detained by local government in Mauritius (Dukhira 1994). Even today citizens are prohibited from getting access to information held by government establishments through the Official Secret Act, 1972 (Act 30 of 1972). The Port Louis’ local government looks the challenge of permitting access to public information regarding the making and implementation of policy. Moreover, Port Louis’ local government wishes to grow well-organized mechanisms for letting public participation in the making and implementation of policy. Local government is a perilous aspect of a reformed system of governance and hence its growth in the field of public participation is vital. Dukhira (1994) has distinguished a series of democratic shortages and threatening signs in the Mauritian government. These have been recognized in relative to the functioning of the Westminster model of open-minded democracy in Mauritius. Dukhira (1994) voiced a perspective on defies which exist menacing the survival of liberal democratic form. Certainly, it is claimed that the difficulties tackled by Port Louis’ local government are further compounded by the presence of various types of rigid and complex systems of rules, regulations, by-laws and administrative organizations. All these endow the public officials at Port Louis’ local government with wide optional powers which unfavorably disturb the citizens’ democratic right. A cautious and insensitive culture is also a direct danger to community growth. However, if public participation is well-known at the Port Louis’ local government, it will help retain the rulers responsible to the people and will avoid policy-makers from making policies which are disadvantageous to the general welfare of the community. It is indispensable to note that the ballot box is not sufficient to express the judgment of the citizens at the Port Louis’ local government, but it is also needy on the steady and constant interaction of the public with the creation and enactment of policy. The key objective of steering the background to the phenomenon of public participation was to articulate a clear problem declaration.

A Video Recorded Interview To Look At Skills Social Work Essay

A Video Recorded Interview To Look At Skills Social Work Essay I was asked to complete a video interview to practice my interviewing skills and analyse my ability to do so effectively. In this essay, I will highlight my strengths and weaknesses, and identify any future learning needs I wish to develop. It is vital for social workers to conduct successful and ethical interviews in their profession, it is therefore critical that I understand the values and techniques used, so that I myself can complete a profitable interview in the future. Firstly, I considered practicalities, such as venue and environment, where I tried to create an atmosphere where the client felt comfortable. I tried to not consciously fidget or distract the client (by playing with my hair/hands) and tried to avoid any intrusions (no one knocked at the door) which could disrupt the clients concentration or affect her mood. I also ensured that we had complete privacy throughout the interview, as this would make the client more comfortable and willing to share information. The working alliance, outlined by Koprowska (2005), indicates that a more successful interview will take place when the interviewer is understanding, attentive and respectful. I believe I demonstrated all these qualities, but my strongest attribute was showing the client respect. I did this by listening attentively, demonstrated by appropriate eye gaze (Egan, 2010) and nodding (Koprowska, 2005), which suggested interest and encouragement (Mehrabian, 1972). I sometimes used vocal prompts, such as yes yes, which also encourages the client to continue talking, but do not act as interruptions to her speaking (Koprowska, 2005). Another way in which I conveyed respect was by being courteous, which is highlight by the GCSS Code of Practice. I was polite and demonstrated good manners, but also communicated core values of social work such as anti-oppressive practice (by recognising the uniqueness of the client Thompson, 2006) and adopting a person-centred approach (by putting the clients needs first), which in turn highlighted my respect to the clients worth and dignity (Koprowska, 2005). I also delivered the interview in accordance with the GSCC Code of Practice by being clear and concise I used direct, simple language and kept the conversation on the subject at hand and directed at the key issues. I used both open and closed questions in the interview as I wished to gain factual information from the client (Koprowska, 2005), but I mainly used open questions as I wanted to elicit more expansive answers (p 83). I also demonstrated use of a probing question so that the client would elaborate on one of her answers. Edenborough (2002) recognises that a probing question can be used to gain further information but it has been suggested that too many probing questions can make the client feel as though she is being interrogated. Therefore, I did not use many. However, they were not necessary as the client was quite articulate in her answers. Tone of voice and pace of speech is another important aspect of verbal communication, especially when working with visually impaired service users (Koprowska, 2005). I believe my tone of voice varied appropriately in the interview, but I was not aware of the pace of my speech. However, I can recall from my shadowing experience, that the social worker spoke slowly and allowed small silences between questions to ensure that the service user had finished talking and giving their answers. I believe this to be a very valuable skill to have when working with visually impaired service users. Walmsley (1994) reports that while only 7% of words and 38% of voice leads to communication, a majority of 55% of communication is due to gestures and expression, and Argyles (1975) research suggested that a persons physical gestures and their mode of sitting can tell us much about that person. It is therefore vital to use non-verbal communication in social work interviews. I sat back in my chair and faced the client squarely to demonstrate a relaxed, open atmosphere to create a sense of involvement with the client (Egan, 2010). My facial expression was neutral with occasional smiles, but it was not distracting as Egan (2010) points out that this can create a tense and uncomfortable environment. Being natural helps put the client at ease (Egan, 2010). I demonstrated a natural persona by laughing with the client when she made a humorous comment. This showed empathy and hopefully added to the rapport building relationship. However, this is the extent of my non-verbal communication and an area that should be improved to include non-vocal prompts and gestures. This will aid the client to understand and validate the verbal conversation I am communicating (Koprowska, 2005). Another limitation in my interview skills is that I did not reflect or summarise at the end of the interview. Edenborough (2002) names the reflecting question, which is the ability to reflect back on the clients answers, which is something I did not consider. Neither did I paraphrase, which checks out understanding (Koprowska, 2005, p87). In addition, I did not end the interview well. I did not conclude or summarise, which Koprowska (2005) identifies as being important to collect up and agree key points (p87). Although, I politely thanked the client for attending the interview, I demonstrated a very poor ending to the interview which should be improved. Not only did I not end the interview well, I did not particularly start it well either. In the engage and explain phase of the interview, I said hello and informed the client that I would be asking her some questions, but I did not elaborate, did not introduce myself or check the clients understanding about the purpose of the interview. This may have jeopardised our relationship and rapport-building. Fortunately in this case, I believe that this did not affect the conversation and there was open and free communication between myself and the client. To conclude, I believe I demonstrated some strong qualities and abilities throughout the interview (for example, showing respect), but there are many aspects which I need to improve on, such as summarising and non-verbal communication. Although I attempted to create a friendly and relaxed environment, the interview appeared to be quite structured and forced, but this may have been because the interview was being recorded and assessed. However, this was my first interview that I have conducted and my nerves may have caused this slight inconsideration. Undertaking reflection upon the interview has highlighted the importance of preparation and planning needed for a successful interview and how this process with essentially help me to develop a more confident approach in future social work practice. Argyle, M. (1975). Bodily communication. Methuen: London, UK Edenborough, R. (2002). Effective interviewing: A handbook of skills and techniques. Kogan Page Ltd: London, UK Egan, G. (2010). The skilled helped: A problem-management and opportunity-development approach to helping. Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning: Belmont, CA, USA Koprowska, J. (2005). Transforming social work practice: Communication and interpersonal skills in social work. Learning Matters Ltd: Exerter, UK Mehrabian, A. (1972). Non-verbal communication. Aldine Atherton: Chicago, USA Thompson, N. (2006). Anti-discriminatory practice. (4th Eds). Palgrave Macmillan: Hampshire, UK Walmsley, H. (1994). Counselling techniques for managers. Kogan Page: London, UK UNIT TWO SHADOWING A SOCIAL WORKER The organisation in which my shadowing opportunity took place was the visual impairment team (VIT) in Rotherham. I shadowed the only social worker in the team for one day. When people are experiencing sight problems, they are referred to an ophthalmologist by their GP or optician, where they are either registered as severely sight impaired or sight impaired. If consent is given, their information is passed on to the social services, where the VIT will contact them to arrange a home visit. I had the opportunity to assist SW* on two of these initial home visits. The VIT offers a person-centred assessment of the care needs of people with a visual impairment and provides specialist equipment and independence training in mobility, communication and daily living skills. Information about some of the resources available to service users was made apparent by the SW during an initial home visit which I was able to observe. Debbie* was a widow in her 50s who had recently been registered as sight impaired. This was the first visit SW made to Debbie, and SW was interested in finding out what Debbies strengths and needs were. Debbie was quite articulate in explaining where she needed help and extra support. For example, she explained that the lighting in her lounge and bedroom was not bright enough for her to see, so SW explained that she would liaise with the council to fit brighter lights. Debbie also expressed that she had trouble reading, and was becoming bored of watching television all of the time, so SW recommended the talking newspaper and audio books, which Debbie was quite interested in. Debbie explained that she frequently visited a local resource centre to engage in activities and would be interested in other groups she could attend. Debbie lived in an elderly neighbourhood and found this quite isolating, and stated that she only had one regular friend. Debbie stated that she had previously bee n prescribed with anti-depressants, at this point SW advised Debbie to seek medical advice from her GP as it appeared that her isolation may be impacting on her emotional wellbeing. On reflection I feel that the SW was able to investigate this further by effectively asking probing questions (see Edenborough, 2002). This communication skill is highly important for SW as verbal communication is vital in this area of social work, as non-verbal communication may be lost on the visually impaired service users. Gaining more information allowed SW to identify appropriate intervention (GP advice) as she was actively analysing/processing the information being given. This type of thinking is closely linked to reflective practice (see Fook Gardner, 2007). When SW asked for my thoughts, I was also able to reflect on the situation and identify that although Debbie presented with low self-esteem and confidence, she appeared to be motivated by wanting to become more involved in community based resources/activities and therefore a good method of intervention would be to encourage and support her to access this.. Below is what I would consider to be an important quote from the Person-Centred Support: What Service Users and Practitioners Say (2008) report: An idea which came from service users themselves will only be realised if individuals are empowered to play their full part, not only in determining their own lives but also in the transformation of public services (p1). Person-Centred Support: A Guide for Service Users (2008) identifies eight important aspects of person-centred support. These included choice and control, listening and information. SW listened intensively to Debbie and was able to pick up hidden feelings behind what Debbie said. SW also gave Debbie plenty of information about available resources and services, which allowed Debbie to have control and make choices about what sort of services she would like. Allowing service users to make their own choices is also written in the GSCC Code of Practice (1.3) and encourages anti-oppressive practice (AOP). Dominelli (2002) states that in order for a practitioner to engage in AOP, they must conceptualise their relationships with clients and move away from privileging their own expert knowledge while devaluing those of the people with whom they work (p34). Essentially, this means that the social worker and service user should work in partnership, where they negotiate with one another to set and achieve goals and objectives (page 36). This empowers the service user and creates a person-centred approach. It was evident that SW adopted a person centred approach and was also able to empathise with the service user as she also had a visual impairment and is also herself a service user. SW demonstrated her knowledge of section 5 of the National Occupational Standards (NOS). She had in-depth knowledge of the services available and of direct payments. During my shadowing opportunity, we discussed relevant legislation and SW reminded me that the VIT work within the statute of the Disability Discrimination Act (DDA 1995, 2005) and NHS and Community Care Act (1990). SW demonstrated many skills and values, which are outlined by the Code of Practice. For example, SW promoted Debbies independence by assisting her to understand her rights (3.1) and promoted her interests by treating her as an equal (1.4), which is also in accordance with the DDA. SW worked in accordance with the NOS by exercising good practice and contacting Debbie after she was referred to the VIT (2G) and by arranging a formal initial assessment to assess Debbies needs (2H), which is also in accordance with the NHS and Community Care Act. Prior to my shadowing opportunity, I was worried as to whether I would be able to follow all the rules and procedures set out by the Code of Practice and NOS once in the world of social work, but after observing SW I was assured that knowledge and skills would come with practice and time. I was already familiar with some of the theoretical perspectives and legislation behind SWs work and believe completing any forthcoming placement will allow me further opportunities to apply theory to practice and to identify appropriate methods of intervention in different social work settings. *False names have been used to respect the confidentiality of the social worker and service user. Disability Discrimination Act (1995, 2005) Dominelli, L. (2002). Anti-oppressive social work theory and practice. Palgrave Macmillan: Hampshire, UK Edenborough, R. (2002). Effective interviewing: A handbook of skills and techniques. Kogan Page Ltd, London Fook, J. Gardner, F. (2007). Practising critical reflection: A resource handbook. McGraw-Hill Companies: Berkshire, UK General Social Care Council Code of Practice for Social Care Workers (2004) National Occupational Standards for Social Work (2002) National Health Service and Community Care Act (1990) Person Centred Support: A Guide for Service Users (2008) Joseph Roundtree Foundation Person Centred Support: What Service Users and Practitioners Say (2008) Joseph Roundtree Foundation UNIT THREE REFLECTING ON FUTURE LEARNING NEEDS During the past five months, I have gained a wide theoretical/knowledge base of social work principles and had the opportunity to apply this to some practical practice experiences (interview and shadowing). Reflecting on these experiences has helped me to identify some key areas which I feel may need to be improved in order to develop my learning, and are highlighted within the body of this report. Writing assessments and reports has been recognised as core skills in social work practice. Therefore, it is essential that I am capable of collecting and presenting information in the form of an assessment/report, especially as my placement is with a Youth Offending Team and I will be required to write coherent reports for other professional bodies that can provide accurate insight of service user experiences and needs that are backed up by relevant theory and knowledge. From completing the ICT assignment, I have gained knowledge on how to format Word documents and search for information on the internet, which will be highly useful when it comes to writing a report. Although I possess these basic skills, learning how to complete a successful assessment/report within legislative and policy frameworks is a major area for development, as this will play a large role in my placement. A major learning goal for my next academic year is that of reflective thinking and writing. Before starting this course, I had not completed a reflective account of writing. Rather, I had only completed experimental reports and critical essays. Even though my skills in reflective writing are improving, I still find this quite difficult. I also need to improve my ability to critically reflect upon my work. Giddens (1991) highlights that I will have to constantly adapt to changing conditions (cited in Fook Gardner, 2007, p10) in the world of work, and critical reflection will allow me to stand back to analyse the issue and manage it more effectively, which in turn will act as a process for me to learn and develop my professional practice (Fook Gardner, 2007). In order to critically reflect back on my practice, I must first learn how to effectively apply theory to practice. I must use a theoretical framework to inform my decisions when on my placement, and then use formal and informal knowledge sources to guide my practice (Oko, 2008). The GSCC Code of Practice clearly points out that a social worker must strive to establish and maintain the trust and confidence of service users (p14). This is vital to form a healthy professional relationship between the social worker and the service user. Service users may be vulnerable and susceptible to discrimination or unjust treatment; therefore, the social worker must not abuse the service users trust or demonstrate oppressive practice, but instead be honest and trustworthy (2.1), communicate in a straightforward way (2.2) and respect confidential information (2.3). I believe two of the most important aspects highlighted by the Code of Practice is that the social worker should be reliable and dependable (2.4) and should honour work agreements and arrangements (2.5). Service users, who can sometimes feel lost and helpless, rely on their social worker to provide services and support to help them lead an independent life as possible, but if the social worker cannot commit to ag reed meetings or agreed plans (Koprowska, 2005, comments on the importance of punctuality), the service users trust and confidence in the social worker and social care services will diminish. Social workers should be sensitive to the needs and experiences of service users and should act appropriately. I aim to develop my skills in understanding the experiences of service users and IDENTIFYING their needs, as this information and knowledge will allow me to target specific potential problem areas and produce more focused support and services. A way I have been able to demonstrate my ability to identify a service users need is when I visited Debbie* during my shadowing opportunity. Debbie had sight problems, and the aim of the visit was to assess any specific areas that she may need help/SUPPORT with. Later, when discussing/reflecting with the social worker I was shadowing, I was able to identify that although Debbie needed practical sight-related help, (e.g. brighter lights in her lounge), she also appeared to be isolated/depressed and have low self-esteem. I discussed/considered various group activities and social groups that may help Debbie to overcome her loneliness and boost her confidence in herself. These were discussed with Debbie, to ensure a person-centred approach was taken and allowed her choice and control. Adopting this approach essentially lends support to the principles of anti-oppressive practice (Thompson, 2006). Another way in which I believe I have demonstrated sensitivity towards service users was in my video interview. Although this was not conducted with a service user, this video analysis enabled me to reflect back on my performance, where I realised I showed great respect towards the client. This is a skill I will transfer when practising social work. Although I believe to have some shown some strengths in my interview assessment and shadowing experience, questioning my techniques has helped me to consider areas on which I need to improve. I acknowledge that my reflecting and summarising in the interview was weak and is an area I definitely need to work on. I must do this to ensure that the client understands the information which was referred to and understands any goals, aims or objectives (Koprowska, 2005). I learned from both experiences that effective communication is of critical importance when working with service users and must be a two way process that values the input of service users. Reflecting on my shadowing experience and working with clients who experience sight impairments is a good example of how communication is key, especially verbal communication, as non-verbal communication and the clients ability to interpret body language may be lost on them (Koprowska, 2005). As a social work student I need to develop on all of these skills during my placement and to build on my academic learning to progress professionally. In addition, I need to increase my confidence and ability to apply this to social work practice and intervention. I acknowledge that continuous reflection of my learning needs is going to be vital to ensure that I become a competent social worker. One who can successfully transfer these learned skills and attributes to different social work settings and to different service user groups to ensure that the best possible care and support is provided. *False names have been used to respect the confidentiality of the service user General Social Care Council Code of Practice for Social Care Workers (2004) Giddens, A. (1991). Modernity and self-identity. Polity: Cambridge, UK Koprowska, J. (2005). Transforming social work practice: Communication and interpersonal skills in social work. Learning Matters Ltd: Exerter, UK Oko, J. (2008). Transforming social work practice: Understanding and using social work theory. Learning Matters Ltd: Exeter, UK Thompson, N. (2006). Anti-discriminatory practice. (4th Eds). Palgrave Macmillan: Hampshire, UK Fook, J. Gardner, F. (2007). Practising critical reflection: A resource handbook. McGraw-Hill Companies: Berkshire, UK